Oilfield service giant Schlumberger reported lower first-quarter revenue and profits yesterday.
It said that, while there was no immediate prospect of an upturn, it remained convinced that any demand recovery for oil would bring increased investment to offset decline in the ageing production base.
Chief executive Andrew Gould said: “We do not see any significant recovery in North American gas drilling before 2010.
“Overseas, while activity declines will be limited, customers are actively seeking and are obtaining price relief to improve the economics of current projects.
“At the same time, exploration expenditures are being deferred in favour of projects that produce immediate cash flow, however, we are encouraged to see offshore deepwater activity resisting fairly well to the current budget cuts.”
The company reported income before charges and credits for the quarter of £642.46million, down 28% on a year earlier. Revenue for the period came in at £4.11billion compared with £4.31billion the year before.
It is understood the jobs of a drilling crew of 28 employed by oilfield service giant Halliburton may be at risk after cancellation of a contract for work on Shell’s Gannet platform.
Shell said yesterday it had notified Halliburton of its intention to cancel a contract for a drilling and workover rig on Gannet. It said this was because of a combination of economic issues.
Halliburton declined to comment.